The Myth & The Majesty

Something weird happened on this blog last week. No, obviously it wasn't a post. I'm aware that I haven't been posting. Shush, you. That's actually what I wanted to show you, though. On a couple of occasions, I've been able to tell you guys a little about ... you . Blogger has their own built-in stats for the blogs they host and they allow me to keep an eye on things -- how the time of day affects the hits I get, how things are different when I include pictures, and exactly how much help Facebook gives me. (A lot. It gives a lot of help. Holy buckets.) Last week, I had an odd hour. It seemed only natural that it would happen now. My conversations with Shorty and Mia Sorella have been somewhat more statistics-heavy as of late and I've been watching my numbers a bit more closely. Lo and behold, I was given an opportunity to play with Excel. This is an approximation of our text string and I'm pretty sure it's relatively accurate. And a

This is the longest I've lived in one house in my adult life. I mention this because holy cow, have I accumulated a bunch of stuff I don't need.  A week ago, all of my furniture and half my boxes got hauled out thanks to the help of friends and family and a Uhaul. Since then I've been sorting, tossing, and packing boxes while basically camping in my living room. And it has been ... illuminating. No matter where I end up next, I won't have the space I have now. This is the ultimate opportunity to cut back. And it's working. I think. This is the dregs part of packing. It's no one's favorite part. This is when I start questioning moving at all. This is the point where the Admiral, seven years ago, genuinely considered burning a house down. Okay, fine. Maybe he didn't consider it that  seriously. To cope, I find myself binging on TV shows I've already watched (because they don't take any concentration) and having impromptu movi

"What a difference it makes in the world when you don't have a headache and you don't feel like s***." - Wise words from my sister. You know what's not fun?  Being sick.  Yes, yes, I know. That's the single most profound thing I've said in months. Thank you.  After my granddad's bout with influenza A, other family members started dropping like flies. A cousin. My dad, who tested positive early last week. Then my mom, who managed to escape for a few days but apparently not completely. And then my aunt, uncle, and cousin who also live out at the ranch.  Like. Flies. I was paranoid. I'd been at the hospital and around each of these people. Then Tuesday came and I had a sore throat ... and Wednesday was worse.  So I quarantined myself for a couple days, just to be on the safe side. No need to let that madness spread, and since the flu can be passed basically by looking at someone who's contagious ... yeah.  I'd